The first reported case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, or MERS, was diagnosed in Saudi Arabia in 2012. Worldwide, more than 100 people have died from MERS over the last two years. The Indiana case of MERS is the first known case in the United States.

The MERS virus has been primarily detected in patients in Saudi Arabia and other countries in the Middle East. However, reports of sporadic cases in Britain, Greece, France, Italy, Malaysia have raised concerns about the potential global spread of the disease by infected airline passengers.

According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control (CDC), the symptoms of MERS-CoV infection include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Approximately thirty percent of patients diagnosed with MERS died.

In conjunction with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Center for Disease Control has developed preparedness goals intended to measure state and local public health jurisdictions’ preparedness and response to bio-terrorism, outbreaks of infectious diseases, and other public health threats and emergencies.

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Cynthia Hodges holds a M.A.in Political Science from NEIU in Chicago, Illinois and a Post-Grad Professional Certificate in Disaster and Terrorism Management from University of North Carolina -Chapel Hill. In addition to a successful writing career, Cynthia is in the process of writing a book on the role of private security guards as first responders in the post 9/11 America. "My career has been a balance of security and education, and my passion for Homeland Security while protecting individual's Constitutional rights has grown as a result of the two."